Harvesters are known for vegetable crops that are not susceptible to bruising, such as for canning and juicing, but vegetable harvesters are known to cause bruising and to reduce the value of produce for distribution as fresh vegetables. Every day, supermarkets throw away produce that is bruised or otherwise marred by harvesting, packing and shipping of the fresh produce.
For example, the state of the art in tomato harvesting of fresh tomatoes that will be displayed for purchase in supermarkets is manual labor. Tomatoes are picked by hand, are placed in a bucket and are carried by hand to a truck or flat bed. The bucket is hoisted to the truck or flat bed and is deposited manually by the recipient into a bin or bins. This manual process is repeated for each bucket of tomatoes picked.
Other harvesters that rip or cut the vines from the ground and separate the tomatoes from the vines are used for tomatoes destined for canning, but these harvesters are not suitable and are not used for harvesting produce for display in supermarkets. These harvesters are known to cause bruising to produce that will result in unsightly marks on the vegetables.